Outlet-box.



A. '1. APPLETON.

vOUTLET BOX.

AYPLIUATION FILED AUG. 21, 1909. Patented Feb. 4:

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

-A'. L' APPLETON.

OUTLBT BOX. 321.101.1101; TILED mG 21,'19o 9.

Patented rev. 4, 19 13.

2 SHEETS-BRETT 8.

V "STATES PATENT cur os.

- .ALBERT'fLfAPrLETor -oF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS,- ASSIGNOR T ArBLEroNEi-EGTKIC *QOMPANI; or cHIcAeo,IL .INoIs, A CORPORATION orILLINoIs',

OUTLET-BOX.

Specification of Letters Batent. u

im resse filed August 2 1, 1 9o9. Serial 1%.513340. s

'TO all whom itrnay concern Be'it known that'I,"A BEuT I. APrLE'roN, a citlzenof the United States, residing at Chicago in the county of. Cook and State 5 .of Illinois,- have invented certain-new; and

Buseful= "Improvements in Out1et-Boxes, of

which the followin 3 is a specification;-

invention-re ates to the" outlet boxes electric-wiring: systems to contain 1 f3" genhes fuseeboxes and-theillike.

demeans 7 for? conveniently connecting ":Another object' is} to. Y produce; improved ineans for obtaining outlet boxesotvarious iengths. I 7

.i'ihs'furtheriobiejct. is to provide improved llmms for securing the box in place in the wall of a; building; o'r -otherstructure.

Fig; 5 isa sectional view'taken in the. plane of dotted line 5 5 elf-Fig; .3. Fig. -6. is a a.

plan view of the box section-shown-in Fig.

" 2, with portions; thereof in section. Fig.1'7.-;

85 is a View illustrating one of the'two positions which the boxattach1ng means may occupy with relation to the. box. Figs. 8'

.. and 9 are detail views lot two different 'methods of connecting together the walls 49 of an outletbox-or box'section; Figs.".10

and '11 are perspective vie sfillustrating a box-attaching means.- a

- The-embodiment herein shown of my invent-ion comprises tw-i) box sections: A and-- B, which are substantially 's'imllar save that one is longer than the other. Said sec-.

tions are provided-with means for. connecting them together, the connecting means ,be-' ing of such nature that along-and aighont Qsection may. be connected'to provide a box" "of a given length; or two short-sections" may be secured together to. forma shorter box 'pritwolong' sections may be united to pro- -,:i'ide'al box of greater length than the glven e' o:E.-the objects of the invention is to then; the of a seetional "outlet Anothenobject oi the. inventi i -J m; i slide P Y 1f e8nS f0r securin t th r, sieiang utlet 1005;.- I

Referring 316w [m :The box-section Patented 1352b}, 1913.

:A comprises theeside walls land 2, the rear wall--3 .andf the endwallfi The box-section B. .COIIIPIISBS' the side walls 1 and 2*, the

-rear Wall 3 and the end. wall4. The means herein shown for connecting together the box sections A:"and1B .in any desired combination comprises .a flange; '5'-formed upon. one edge of each ofth'e -walls 2 2f of-gsaidj sections, said Ifiange having at; its middle portion upon one 'edge thereofyaQ-hook- 6 .adapted-.-to engage a screw 7 s'eatediin each of the walls 1' l of said sections. ,The I flanges 5} are --'preferably formed integral I with the-side walls. 2 2* and; are bent to lie in planes substantially, parallel with said side walls. .'As will. be;apparent;glfrorii' Fi -l, eachbox+sect1on.has-aserew 7 in one si e wall and. .a-hook 6 -on.-;t he' .otherside wall,

a the hooks: beingplaced iupoii the; corresponde i'ng sides of v alhsectionsTF-flt. will thus be seen that any. two box se'ctions may be se-v 4 r cured together, the hook-6 of'each section enga g1ng -a'-screw. 7 .ofthe other section.

When the screws 7 .are tightened up the secured togethen. Theflanges'o are of sufficient" width andv length -to preventrelativedisplacement of the box-sections through twisting stresses.

-- hooks- 6 willbe clampedagainst the adjacent-slde walls, and the box-sections rigidly It will be seen .that a;workman supplied withi-box-sections .A and B can assemble a box ofthe desired lengthby operating .two

screws only The-screwsneed not .be'; removed when the sections arefto be separated,

it being sufiicient, to loosen the screws. enough to permit of withdrawingthe hooks 6.; In assembling a box, the hooks 6' are. slipped 'onto the screws 7 and the 1 latterv tightened'up.

The side and end of each boa-section are preferably formed of an integral'piece of sheet metal. .T-he rear wall 3 or 3 may be secured to the side and end walls by means to be next described.

. The rear-wall overlies the edges. of the side and .end walls. Upon: opposite edges of the rear wall and near one edge thereof areformed angular lugs 8 arr'anged tolie at the inner sides-of"the'side walls,-a's shown in Figs. 2, Land 6. 'Ontheedges "ofthe rear .1; wall from which thelugsS are bent up, are

angular tongues .9, which are adapted to be bentto enter openings' 'i iFig-lffil in th li supporting ears to the box with of the box, and at other tirnesg to as jacent portions of the sidewalls. seen that the lugs Sand the tongues 9 constitute a simple, yet etlicient, means for rigidly connecting together the rear and side walls of the box.

Instead of bending the upper ends of the tongues 9 into the openings 10, as just-de- .scribed, said. tongues may be of sufficient size, as shown in Fig. 9, tooverlie the opening and to permit of forclng a POl'tlOIL 11 of the tongue into said opening.

cent to the openings 14 through which the hooks ext-end, as shown in 3 and 4:. The base 18 is secured against removal from the hooks 15 by means of a stud 15 formed upon the base 13 adjacent to one of the openings 14;. As will be understood from Fig. 2, said stud may be bent to lie behind the adjacent hook 155 and thereby prevent the base 13 from being removed from said books.

It I is sometimes desirable to attach the lid ears C nt; side oh the lying substantially fiush with the ears to the box so that th. 3 cod 7 \vardly from the front of t I, in Fig. '7. The base 13 may as .aced upon the hooks 1.5 so that the ears 1 occupy either of the two positions just described. Two studs 16 are provided adj; of the openin in each has that one or said studs shaii be in ,3 i: bending behind a hook whichever position the ears 1). may occupy, as will be clear from a comparison of Figs. 3 and. 7. v

Conduits may be connected with the box in any preferred manner. I have herein shown openings Him the side and rear ".l of the box. which openings are norn'ially closedby plugs 18.

Switches, etc, maybe mounted in the box by any desired means, as, for example, perforated, threaded ears 19, formed on the side walls of the box.

lilo undue limitation should be understood from the foregoing detailed description, for the present embodiment is susceptible oi? various modifications without departing from. the spirit of the invention.

' I claim as my invention:

1. An electric outlet box comprising two sections, and means for connecting said sections together, consisting of a single hook on each section and a single screw on each nuances l-twili be section, the hooks being adapted I to he slipped beneath the heads of the screws, and the screws clamping the hooks against the adjacent portions of the sections.

2. An electric outlet box comprising two sections and means for connecting said sections together, consisting of a single .fiange on each section, each flange having a hook thereon, and a projecting part on each section, the hooks being adapted to engage said projecting parts, saidflanges overlying the adjacent portions of the sections and assisting to prevent relative displacement of the sections.

3. An electric outlet box consisting of two body sections of unequal length, and means for connecting said sections together.

4.. Anelectric outlet boxhaving a boxsupporting device, said device comprising an aperturedj portion, a hook on the box adapted to enter said apertured portion, and

meansto prevent withdrawal of said hook from said apertured' portion. a

5. An electric outlet box having a boxsupporting device, said device comprising an apertured portion, a device on the box adapted to enter said apertured portion, and means on said apertured portion for-preventing withdrawal of the second mentioned device from said apertured portion.

6. An electric outlet box. having a boxsupporting ear, said ear having a base provided with an openingand a stud near said opening, said box having a hook thereon adapted to enter said opening, said stud being adapted to be bent to lie adjacent to said hook to prevent its withdrawal from said opening. 3

7. An electric. outlet box, box-supporting device having a base provided with two openings and two studs near one of saidv openings, said box having two hooks thereon adapted to entersaid openings, each of said studs being adapted to be bent to lie behind one of said hooks to prevent itswithdrawal from its opening.

8. A structure comprising two metal walls, one of said walls having an opening therein, and the other wall overlying the of the first mentioned wall and having a lug bent at substantially a right angle, the outer end of said lug lying in said opening.

9. .tri store comprising two opposite an 'iiird wall, said third wall l1avgs seen which lie at the inner sides of i d 'o -osite walls, each of said opposite wails having an opening therein, said third wall having lugs which lie at the outer sides of said opposite walls and enter said openings.

10. A structure comprising two side walls, an end wall integral with said side walls, a rear wall overlying the edges of said other walls,-lugs on said rear wall at the inner faces of the side walls said side walls ha.ving=.

openings therein, and lugs on said rear wall at the outer faces of theside walls and entering said openings.

11. An electric outlet box consisting of two body sections, each comprising two side walls and a rear wall, the side walls and rear wall of one section being longer than those of the other section, said sections being fitted together with the free edges of said side and rear walls abutting; and interen gaging parts carried by the respective sections for securing said sections together.

12. An electric outlet box comprising a plurality of body sections, each having two side walls and a rear wall, each of said sec- 5 'tionshaving a hook at the edge of one of its side walls and a projection at the edge of its other side wall, whereby the hook and the projection of any section is adapted to be interlocked with the hook and projection 20 J. RAYMOND BAssE, GEORGE L. CHINDAHL. 

